Sweet, Oblivious, and Spineless
by Hitokun
Summary: 11.11 - a day where Pocky is celebrated. At Kitauji, confessions abound on this day, but Kumiko is oblivious to it all. After receiving multiple boxes of the sweet stuff, will Kumiko figure it out before the day is over?


**A/N:** I missed the deadline for 11.11 by a few hours...Oh well.

Please enjoy randomness and review if you liked it! Thanks!

* * *

At Kitauji high school, November 11th was as big of a deal as Valentine's day.

Rumor had it that there was a love story between a third year leaving for America and first year who thought her love was unrequited. However, after he gave the girl a box of Pocky on November 11th and they ended up dating and staying together until they got married.

It was nothing but a naïve romance story that had a ton of plot holes, but that didn't stop high school girls from fantasizing about it. It fueled them to believe that today was a day of superstitious tradition that granted wishes.

In reality, it was just some dumb mishap where a third year confessed to a girl he liked and gave her a box of Pocky at the same time. It wasn't even on November 11th and it didn't work out, but for some reason, it…just stuck.

So, this November marked the sixth annual commencement of the Valentine's day ripoff, causing the entire school to be reduced to nothing but a bunch of hormonal teenagers.

Unfortunately, Kumiko was more than a bit out of the loop, thinking nothing of it when she saw nearly all of her classmates with a box of Pocky in their possession.

"Kumiko-chan, Kumiko-chan!"

Kumiko looked up from her seat by the window. She waved to an overly enthusiastic Midori who was practically skipping over to her.

"Midori-chan, you sure are in a good mood today…" Kumiko smiled, feeling almost envious as she wondered how there could be so much energy bundled up in such a small girl.

"Of course I am! It's Pocky day! They're having a huge sale at the supermarket and Kohaku and I got a ton!" The small blonde smiled from ear to ear, bursting with excitement.

"Oh. Is that what it was? I was wondering why everyone brought a box to school…" Kumiko glanced around, watching as girls huddled around their desks, squealing over their chocolate covered biscuits. "Geez…they seem way too excited. Was the sale really that amazing?" Kumiko mused to herself really as she raised an eyebrow skeptically at the buzz of excitement in the air.

Midori perked up when she heard this, blinking in surprise. "Kumiko-chan, you don't know?"

Kumiko looked over, confused. "Hm? Know what?"

"Well, you see…today is-"

"K-Kumiko!"

Both girls looked up at the sudden interruption, a shifty looking Tsukamoto Shuuichi hovering around Kumiko's desk. He had one of his hands behind his back and his eyes darted around nervously.

"Uhm...What's wrong, Shuuichi?" Kumiko asked, slightly concerned. Her childhood friend was sweating bullets, his arms ramrod straight at his side, his knuckles white from his clenched fists.

"Well, you see…I wanted to give you something. It's not like it means anything though." Shuuichi scratched his head, trying to think of the words he had rehearsed ad nauseam last night. His face turned a bright red. Suddenly, Shuuichi shoved a small box into Kumiko's hands and the brunette fumbled with it briefly to avoid dropping the mystery object.

"W-What are you doing?"

"J-Just take it! If you have an answer for me, meet me in the music room at lunch time!" With that, he quickly retreated back to his seat on the other side of the room. He ducked down in his chair, as if that would hide him from Kumiko.

After realizing what she had in her hands, Kumiko stared at Shuuichi fidgeting nervously in his seat. She furrowed her eyebrows, confused. "What? It's just Pocky, isn't it…? If I really wanted a box, they're on sale, aren't they?" Kumiko wondered if there was something wrong with the boy as she scrutinized the impromptu gift. It was green tea flavored, not even a limited edition or anything. She shook the contents, and listened to the rattle of the biscuit sticks in the box, expecting to hear something out of the ordinary.

Nope. Just the typical sound of chocolate and biscuits.

Not like she would have been able to tell if there was a difference though.

Midori looked on in shock, realizing that the euphonium player didn't understand the meaning behind the gesture just now. She laughed awkwardly. "You see, Kumiko-chan…Tsukamoto-kun-"

"Oh, what about Tsukamoto-kun?"

It was a new voice this time and Midori let out a yelp as Hazuki joined their conversation.

"I-It's nothing! Nothing at all! Homeroom's going to start soon! Let's get to our seats!" Midori effectively contained the situation, steering Hazuki to her desk as Kumiko stared in disbelief, wondering what the hell was wrong with everyone this morning.

She shoved the box of Pocky into her schoolbag, thinking of sharing it with Reina later.

* * *

Once lunchtime rolled along, there was a tension in the air that was incredibly stifling. It felt like the days leading up to an exam, or just before a big competition, or even…a bit like Valentine's day. Kumiko was apathetic, but couldn't help but wonder if she was the odd one out.

"Kumiko, we're going to eat at the cafeteria today. Are you going to join us?" Hazuki strolled over to Kumiko as the brunette finished packing away her books.

"Hmm…I brought a lunchbox today." Kumiko genuinely thought about it, something nagging at the back of her mind. It felt like she was forgetting something. "Yeah, sure. I'll be right down. I-" She suddenly stopped as she spotted a glimpse of black hair and black thigh highs pass by the classroom door.

"On second thought. I have something to do! Sorry! I'll see you two in class after." Kumiko smiled sheepishly as she apologized. Gathering her things quickly, the euphonium player dashed out, leaving her friends staring after her, wondering where she was off to in such a hurry.

"Huh. That's odd. Kumiko usually doesn't have much to do at lunch. Extra practice?" Hazuki mused to herself, scratching her chin.

"Hahaha…That must be it! Oh, Kumiko-chan…always so hardworking, right? Haha…" Midori felt the pressure as she hoped that Hazuki would leave it at that.

"That she is! Now, let's get going! Their kitsune udon usually sells out pretty quickly and I want to…" Hazuki paused for a second, her voice getting softer. "I want to find Tsukamoto-kun after too. I need to give him something."

Midori swallowed hard, not liking the direction this was going. She just had to leave it to Hazuki to crush on the only boy who would obviously never go for anyone except for Kumiko…

Meanwhile, Kumiko had run out into the hallway with her lunch, looking for a certain trumpet player.

She looked from side to side, trying to filter through the crowd. It wasn't long before her eyes met a pair of deep violet ones. The smile was reflexive as she saw the girl leaning casually by the window sill across from her classroom. Pushing through the stream of students, Kumiko made her way over.

"Reina!"

"Kumiko, want to have lunch together?"

Reina cut to the chase as she posed the question casually.

"Of course! I was just about to ask you the same thing."Kumiko laughed, glad that some things never changed. She pulled Reina along, their hands locked together. It wasn't often that Kumiko would do this, but the hallway was busy.

As the two girls made their way through the corridors and up the stairs to their usual spot, Kumiko noticed that Reina had something extra with her, a decorated gift bag.

"Oh, what's that?" Kumiko pointed to the bag, a grin pulling at her lips as she teased. "Could it be? Don't tell me it's a present for me?"

Reina grinned in return, scoffing. "I know your bad personality makes you want to think that, but…it's not."

"Ah! That's too bad!" Kumiko feigned disappointment as she whirled around to flash another grin at the trumpeter. "But you'll show me what's inside, right?"

"Yes, yes. You don't need to worry. It's way too much for me to finish anyway."

They mounted the last set of stairs coming to the small bridge that connected the school's two buildings.

"Too much? What is it?" Kumiko was genuinely intrigued now, wondering if it was edible. She was getting hungry. She did skip breakfast this morning…

"A few of the boys in my class gave me Pocky today. I was going to share it with you, Kumiko." Reina said matter of factly as they both walked out onto the roof. It was Reina's usual place for practicing, but Kumiko usually made it more of a lunch spot when she insisted on joining the trumpeter.

The two girls paused suddenly, noticing the presence of two other people just ahead of them.

"I love you, Senpai!"

The unknown girl bowed at the waist as she thrust out a small box towards the boy in front of her. He seemed embarrassed, but overjoyed.

Kumiko and Reina stared in disbelief as they watched a confession unfold in front of them. From where Kumiko was standing, it looked like the girl held out a box of…Pocky?

The boy gladly accepted the box and they shared a quick embrace. Luckily, the two love birds noticed Reina and Kumiko frozen to their spot by the door. In no time, they scrambled off towards the other side of the bridge, laughing all the way down the stairs.

Kumiko didn't try to hide how uncomfortable that made her, trudging her way slowly to the ledge where let herself slide down to the ground against the railing. She was still in semi-shock, trying not to gag from how nauseatingly sweet that was. "Haha…that was…interesting…"

"Hmm. It was." Reina mused aloud as she took a seat beside Kumiko. She opened the bag with the chocolate in it, pulling out a box as she ripped open the packaging. "Here, Kumiko." Reina held out one of the biscuit sticks and Kumiko took it with a smile.

"Thanks, Reina. Oh! Green tea. I got a box like this earlier." Kumiko mentioned off-handedly as she put the Pocky in her mouth, letting the flavored coating melt before she took a bite.

Reina bristled immediately at that, making Kumiko turn at the sudden stiffening. "Reina?"

"Oh, is that so? Who gave it to you?" Reina put on one of her neutral faces, trying to compose herself. "Was it Tsukamoto?"

"Geez, again with Shuuichi?" Kumiko let out an exasperated sigh, shaking her head. "You're right this time, but it's just Pocky…not like it means anything. I don't get why everyone's so worked up about Pocky today. Sure, it's 11.11, but I don't think it's anything to get so excited over…"

Reina's expression changed suddenly at this and the trumpeter realized that Kumiko didn't know. A wave of relief washed over her and she smiled. "You're right."

"Yeah…I'm glad that you're on my side, Reina. It seems like everyone's been just a little bit weird today…" Kumiko sighed as she leaned on the other girl's shoulder.

"I guess it can't be helped…" Reina paused for a second, glancing into her paper bag full of chocolate as she hesitated. After what Kumiko just said, she wondered what she would think. Deciding on a whim, the trumpeter reached in and pulled out another box of Pocky, holding it out towards Kumiko.

"I just happened to go grocery shopping yesterday and they were on sale. You like strawberry, don't you?"

Kumiko's eyes flitted from the box in Reina's hand to the girl's serious face. There was no denying it. It was for her. Kumiko shook her head as she smiled, taking the Pocky from Reina's hand. "Not you too, Reina…"

Reina smirked, running a hand through her hair. "Just enjoy the free chocolate, Kumiko. It's not like a confession of love, you know?" Her playful tone hung in the air as Reina pulled out another stick of green tea Pocky. She held it to Kumiko's lips, dangling the treat in front of her.

"I-I know that!" Kumiko let out an exasperated huff before she chomped down on the biscuit, pulling it from Reina's fingers.

Kumiko felt a blush rise to her cheeks. When Reina said it like that, the brunette felt suddenly self-conscious.

* * *

The hours breezed by after lunch and Kumiko found the day progressing normally. Aside from Shuuichi giving her strange looks every chance he got, classes ended without incident and band practice carried on as usual. However, there was an extra dose of section practice and Kumiko was completely exhausted by the end of it.

Kumiko sighed as she finished packing up her euphonium. Their section was the only one left in the music room, Asuka forcing them to stay an extra twenty minutes. Kumiko shelved her instrument in the storage room, sighing as she noticed slivers of sunset streaming through the windows. It was on days like this where a little bit of chocolate would be a good pick-me up. Thankfully, she had two boxes in her bag.

"Yo! Oumae-chan! Good job today!"

Kumiko looked over, cringing as she heard the voice. "Ah, Asuka-senpai…thank you." It wasn't like she disliked talking to Asuka, but after just spending a whole two hours with her, there definitely was a limit to how much she could take.

"So!" Asuka leaned in close to Kumiko at this, a wide grin on her face as she waggled her eyebrows suggestively. "Did anyone give you Pocky today?"

"Geh-" Kumiko recoiled slightly at the proximity, disliking the way the older girl's eyes flickered with mischief. "A few, but what about it…?"

"Oh ho! Nice, Oumae-chan! As expected of my cute kouhai! Are you going to reply to those lovestruck fools or are you just going to leave them hanging? You're such a player, you!" Asuka was beside herself with amusement, grinning to no end as she reached out for Kumiko, making kissing faces.

"H-Hey, Asuka-senpai!" Kumiko batted away Asuka's hands, getting annoyed as well as confused. "What are you talking about anyway? It's just Pocky, isn't it?"

"That's where you are gravely mistaken, my little lost lamb! Those boxes of artificially flavored chocolate covered bread sticks are none other than…" Asuka took a second to work in her dramatic pause. "A confession of love!"

"Oh, is that so? I don't really understand, but that sounds nice…" Kumiko deadpanned her response, certain that the beautiful girl only had her looks going for her.

"Tsk, tsk, tsk." Asuka shook her head as she reprimanded Kumiko. "Oumae-chan, don't you know the great Kitauji tradition of Pocky confessions?"

Kumiko blinked, narrowing her eyes as she let the information set in.

"It does sound stupid, but I can assure you that it's a biiiig hit with all the students here. It's like a Pocky love letter and there's all that nonsense about playing the Pocky game if the recipient agrees to accept the other person's feelings."

"Huh…I…never knew…" The gears were turning in Kumiko's head as she worked out what Asuka was saying. Even though the whole premise sounded ridiculously stupid, it would explain why all her classmates were so worked up about Pocky…and the random confession she saw on the roof today…and…

Kumiko's eyes suddenly widened as she recalled the two people who gave her Pocky today.

A furious blush worked its way onto her face as she started stammering. "E-E-Ehhh?! I-It-It c-can't be! N-No way!" Kumiko clutched her head as she replayed her conversation with Reina.

 _Reina._

Kumiko started to hyperventilate as she realized that Reina must have known.

Or did she know?

Maybe Reina was just being Reina and thought that it would be nice to have a snack for lunch. She did say that they were on sale…and strawberry was her favorite flavor. Reina was always considerate like that…

Or maybe Reina was madly in love with her and decided to find a roundabout way to convey that?

With all their flirting, it was hard to tell.

Kumiko paled, wondering how she could have been so oblivious. Her heart was suddenly racing as her brain overloaded with all the facts. It seemed coincidental, but at the same time…it wasn't farfetched to think that friends could exchange Pocky normally. Could they? Kumiko groaned in frustration, not familiar with this stupid school tradition.

"Oumae-chan?"

"Asuka-senpai! I-I have to go! I'll see you tomorrow!" Kumiko hurriedly gathered her things, shouldering her bag as she rushed out of her room with her sheet music still in hand.

Kumiko sped down the hallways, frazzled as she stuffed her papers into her bag. Rushing through the halls, the euphonium player only had one goal in mind.

She needed to find her and ask her...To ask her...

Kumiko slowed her pace as she came to the classroom where the trumpets usually had their section practice. She could hear the sharp brightness of Reina's sound travel down the hall. Hesitating for a second, Kumiko took a deep breath before she stood in front of the door, her hand poised to knock.

Squeezing her eyes shut, she went for it, rapping her knuckles against the sliding door before opening it.

The music stopped and Reina turned towards the entrance.

"Kumiko?"

Kumiko felt her breath hitch in her throat and found it hard to swallow her awe. The sunset streamed in through the windows, framing Reina perfectly as the rays reflected off her trumpet and her silky black hair. The euphonium player took another deep breath to calm her nerves. She shut the door behind her as she entered.

"Reina." Kumiko mustered up a smile, trying not to let her nervousness show, but her lips were angulated strangely, her smile noticeably forced. "I wanted to walk home with you. I didn't know you'd still be here."

"Well, I was waiting for you." Reina put down her trumpet as she walked over to Kumiko. "Is everything alright? You seem...anxious about something."

As always when they were alone, Reina would gravitate towards Kumiko, unable to stop herself from touching the other girl. She lay a hand on Kumiko's cheek, feeling the warmth of a blush that crept onto the brunette's face.

"Reina…I-" Kumiko paused, averting her eyes shyly. Her mind buzzed with all her questions, with her insecurities. She felt stupid for making a big deal of everything, but…what if it was true?

Reina's eyes stared at her inquisitively, a wrinkle of concern in her forehead.

Kumiko took a deep breath, her heart aching at the sight of Reina's worried expression.

"W-Was it really not a confession of love?" Kumiko blurted this out suddenly, immediately cupping a hand over her mouth as she did so. The brunette mentally berated herself, but her words had already escaped her lips without a hint of censorship.

At first, Reina looked puzzled, but realization sunk in as she remembered what she said earlier. She let her hand drop from Kumiko's face, bringing it up to her own mouth as she stifled her laughter. "K-Kumiko! Is that what you were worried about?"

Kumiko shifted her feet uncomfortably, fidgeting with the hem of her skirt as she watched Reina's reaction. "Uh yeah. I heard from Asuka-senpai that it was popular thing to do when you liked someone, but I didn't know…and it's definitely okay to do between friends, but I feel stupid for not knowing and I-" The brunette was rambling now, wondering why she had rushed over in such a panic.

What was it that she wanted to ask Reina?

The euphonium player stared at her shoes, her heart thudding against her ribcage as she realized that she wanted Reina to be serious. She was disappointed. From the bottom of her heart, she wanted it to be a real confession this time.

Reina took a step closer to the taller girl, tipping Kumiko's chin up to have the girl look at her. They were in close proximity and Kumiko could see that the trumpeter was smiling apologetically. "I'm sorry, Kumiko. I didn't mean to laugh."

"It's okay…" Kumiko pouted, reaching up to grab Reina's hand, pulling it away from her chin as she held their hands down at her side.

"It's just that I think spineless guys are no good. The whole premise of the confession is to play the Pocky game, so it's practically cheating." Reina held Kumiko's gaze, her usually violet eyes darkening to an obsidian shade.

Kumiko shuddered, a shiver running down her spine. Still, she was curious.

"What do you mean by cheating, Reina?"

Reina smirked, taking her hand out of Kumiko's as she snaked her arms around the brunette's neck. "A confession of love shouldn't be ruined by such gimmicky tactics. After all, if I wanted to kiss you, Kumiko…"

The shorter girl pulled Kumiko in towards her, their lips trembling as they grazed each other.

" _I would just do it."_

Kumiko closed her eyes and expected to feel Reina's soft lips against hers, but the warmth lingered only slightly before it disappeared. Kumiko's eyes snapped open suddenly. The brunette was left standing there, her heart nearly ripping a hole through her chest with how fast it was beating. Her mind was blank, just the scent and feel of Reina emblazoned in her memory.

The trumpeter, on the other hand, was already half way across the room, packing up her instrument hastily.

Kumiko stood, watching in silence as she recovered from what had _almost_ happened. She watched Reina finish gathering up her things, making her way back over as if nothing had changed. However, the trumpeter continued walking past Kumiko in a hurry, her hair fluttering behind her as she headed towards the door.

A sudden burst of panic hit the brunette and she shot her hand out, grabbing Reina by the wrist.

"Reina, please…"

As the trumpeter turned, Kumiko could see the heavy blush on the girl's face, her pursed lips drawn into a thin line. Her eyes shimmered beautifully in the dusk lighting, but they were brimming with tears.

"I-I'm sorry, Kumiko." Reina glanced up at Kumiko, ashamed of herself for acting that way. "I took things too far just now. I understand if you-"

A gentle smile tugged at Kumiko's lips and she shook her head. "Don't be sorry for that, Reina." The brunette tugged at Reina's hand, bringing them closer once again. Kumiko smirked this time, her tone adopting a playful lilt. "I don't mind that you're a terrible tease."

Reina blinked away the tears as she relaxed, standing in Kumiko's half-embrace. They stood just inches apart as Kumiko leaned down to capture Reina's lips with her own.

The two girls shared their first kiss in the empty classroom, with the same thought running through both their heads. Despite the ridiculous premise, they were somewhat thankful to the spineless guys who came up with this whole tradition at Kitauji.


End file.
